Australian Study on Public Knowledge of Human Genetics and Health

Abstract

Aims: This study was designed to obtain data on public understanding of genetic concepts in the adult population of Western Australia. It explored knowledge of genetic risk of disease, inheritance, biology, determinism, and factors that predict relatively higher genetic knowledge within the general population. Method: A cross-sectional telephone survey of 1,009 respondents. Results: Most members of the Western Australian community are aware of basic genetic concepts and the link between genes, inheritance, and risk of disease. Significantly fewer understand the biological mechanisms underlying these concepts and there was some misconception around the meaning of ‘increased genetic risk’. The odds of higher genetic knowledge (>19 out of 24 questions correct) were greater among those with 12 years or more education (OR = 3.0), those aged 18–44 years (OR = 2.3), women (OR = 2.0), those with annual household income of AUD 80,000 or more (OR = 1.8), and those who had talked with someone (OR = 1.7) or searched the internet (OR = 1.6) for information on genes and health. Conclusions: This study provides evidence of an association between social location and public knowledge of human genetic concepts related to health and disease. This is consistent with previous findings and raises questions about the acquisition of textbook genetics knowledge within socio-cultural contexts. The impact of misconceptions about genetic concepts on the uptake of preventive health behaviors requires further investigation, as does the level of genetics knowledge that is required to empower informed participation in individual and societal decisions about genetics and health.

Citizens' perspectives on personalized medicine: a qualitative public deliberation study

“…38 There is also a growing need to improve public and professional knowledge of genomics and, now, personalized medicine. [39][40][41][42][43] Although these educational needs certainly existed before the emergence of personalized medicine, it is hoped that the increasing interest in the translation of personalized medicine tests and technologies will renew efforts to increase public and professional discourse of the benefits and risks of personalized genomic tests that aim to stratify patients and inform treatment decision making, and not ration health care.…”

Public attitudes towards genetic testing revisited: comparing opinions between 2002 and 2010

“…13,16 Men seem to have more positive attitudes towards testing, 10,13 but some studies have indicated that women are more knowledgeable on genetics. 17,18 Higher levels of genetic knowledge, mostly among those with higher education, are associated with a more favourable attitude towards genetics in some studies, 16,19 but this association was not found in others. 10,13 The relationship between knowledge and support of testing seems more complex, because more knowledge may translate to a less perceived benefit of testing.…”

Genetic Literacy And Attitudes Survey (Iglas): International Population-Wide Assessment Instrument

“…Erby, Roter, Larson, & Cho, 2008;Hooker et al, 2014;Hott et al, 2002;Molster, Charles, Samanek, & O'Leary, 2008;Pearson & Liu-Thompkins, 2012;Saul, 2013). They have also largely focused on well-defined populations such as undergraduate students and young adults (Carver et al, 2017;Fitzgerald-Butt et al, 2016).…”

“…For example, in one study participants were asked to classify various traits and health conditions (e.g. eye colour, cystic fibrosis, heart disease) as being either entirely genetic, entirely environmental or a mixture of both (Molster et al, 2008). However, it was not thought appropriate to use such a restricted measure for the traits of interest in iGLAS, as research has consistently shown that all complex human traits are a combination of genes and environments (Collins, 2010;Plomin et al, 2016).…”